The Republican journal., 1887-12-01
The Driven Well Decision.

FACTS REGARDING THE ORIGIN, THE AUTHOR,
AND TIE NUMBER OF WELLS DRIVEN.
1t is not often the Supreme Court of the
United States passes upon ii suit involving so
great Il value as was effected by the recent
"dlivc we'll decision. After nearly ten years
litigation, iE which the owners of the "drve
well'' patent have uniformly succeeded, the
Supreme Court, in decision that took Justice
Blatchford but six minutes to read, has COM
petcly and forever destroyed all hopes of ever
getting dollar for the invention. The ayerc-
gate loss is in the neghborhood of $50 100000.
The losers by this reverse are those who bought
Of Nelson ". Green, the inventor. the right to
collect royalty in various parts of the United
States, and the largest loss is sustained by the
New York firm of Andrews 4 Co., long known
as vessel wreckers. Mr.. Andrews is a we'll
known inventor, whose genius has devised
many novel methods of pumping out sunken
ships, saving their cargocs and raising their
hullS His firm has spent not less than half n
million on the drive well patent. The firm is
worth II 100000 and its sovency is not, of
course. to be affected by this adverse decision,
but all that has been spent to sustain the claim
to royalty en- driven wells Is a dead loss.
The story of Green's invention Is queer
one. He was educated at West Point, but has
always been regarded eccentric, having
strange ideas in religious matters and spending
a good deal OF money on spiriualistic medi-
ums. In 1861, while resident Of Cortland,
\. L., he raised regiment for the war. His
men when mustered in were encampcd on the
fair grounds at Cortland, and the distance to
water being inconvenient, Col. Green concciv
cd the notion that he could secure 4 supply by
sinking two-inch iron pipe with perforated
point or section on the lower end of it. He set
two soldiers at work with two sledge ham,
mers, and in two days time had good pump
in working order. When his regiment went to
the seat of war they carried sledges and pipes
to put down wells when settled in permanent
camp. There was seldom need for such wells
in army life, and Green thought little about his
discovery until the war was over, when he APP
piled for patent in 1866. Two Years later his
application was granted and he began to sell
territory. Andrews Il 90. bought nearly the
whole United States, Green retaining New
England and making his home in Boston.
where he still lives.
In 1868 the first successful windmill for
pumping water was invented by an old Indian
missionary named Wheeler, up In the Apostle
Islands in Lake Superior, and the two inven-
tors locked arms and swept the prairies Of
Wisconsin, Iowa. Illinois and Minnesota. 1t Is
estimated that there are not less than 10000
driven wells in Iowa. Michigan has %, 900, and
there are so many in Minnesota that the
Grange voted $4,000 to pay lawyers to fight
Green's patent. In all the level prairie country
'"S q Wa SihPiC tuiiS " ollNC an lLOH pipc
down twenty to fifty feet and attach pump,
when there would be as good well as weeks
digging at cost of "a or So perpendicular
foot could give. Texas, Arkansaw and Mis-
souri, farmers all went in for driven wells, and
it is said that there are not less than three mil
lion wells of this sort in the United States. On
each Of these the owners of the patent propos-
ed to collect a royalty of $40. Where an un-
usually large pipe had been used or there were
exceptional circumstances connected with the
application Of the method larger royalty
would have been demanded. For instance, on
the gang wells which Andrews \ Co. put down
to supply large portion of Brooklyn with
water, where there are several hundred driven
wells ten to fifteen feet apart, special royalty
would have been expected.
The farmers from the first resisted the de-
mand Of the drive-well ''ghouls" as the West
ern papers called the owners of the patent, and
1t is stated by attorneys who have been employ
ed on the case that not over $4,000 has been
collected. Where this has been paid to respOn-
sible parties, the people who paid It can now,
Of course, recover 1t II they will take the
tr0uble to sue.